Descrizione • Usi / Funzione

In 1907, Urbain described a process by which Marignac’s ytterbium (1879) could be separated into thetwo elements, ytterbium (neoytterbium)and lutetium. These elements were identical with “aldebaranium” and “cassiopeium,” independentlydiscovered by von Welsbach about the same time. Charles James of the University of New Hampshire also independently prepared the very pure oxide,lutecia, at this time. The spelling of the element was changed from lutecium to lutetium in 1949. Lutetium occurs in very small amounts in nearly allminerals containing yttrium, and is present in monazite to the extent of about 0.003%, which is a commercial source. The pure metal has been isolatedonly in recent years and is one of the most difficult to prepare. It can be prepared by the reduction of anhydrous LuCl3 or Luf3 by an alkali or alkalineearth metal. The metal is silvery white and relatively stable in air. While new techniques, including ion-exchange reactions, have been developed toseparate the various rare-earth elements, lutetium is still the most costly of all rare earths. It is priced at about $100/g. Lutetium-176 occurs naturally (97.41%)with lutetium-175 (2.59%), which is radioactive with a very long half-life. It is radioactive with a half-life of about 4 X 10^10 years. Lutetium has 49 isotopesand isomers that are now recognized. Stable lutetium nuclides, which emit pure beta radiation after thermal neutron activation, can be used as catalystsin cracking, alkylation, hydrogenation, and polymerization. Virtually no other commercial uses have been found yet for lutetium. While lutetium, likeother rare-earth metals, is thought to have a low toxicity rating, it should be handled with care until more information is available. 1

Benvenuto!

Chemistry-Reference.com provides you with capsules on many topics in chemistry. Additionally, there are reference tables and profiles of every element and thousands of compounds. Use the interactive menu bar located above to get started. Many online periodic tables only provide basic information for a particular element. Here, a full profile of the element's physical properties, chemical behavior, isotopes, and electron structure are provided. For further reading and reference, list of sources can be found at the conclusion of each page.